Homeless in America: A children's story

Each night across America more than one million children are homeless. They and their parents now account for 38% of America's homeless. They are also the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. The demand for emergency shelter by families with children has increased 50% since 1995 and 15% in the last year alone. Despite the lowest unemployment rate in 30 years and a booming stock market, the number of homeless children today is higher than at any other time since the Great Depression. Throughout the early part of 1999, the Institute for Children and Poverty surveyed almost 2,000 families with more than 4,000 children in 24 locations to assess the state of homeless children across America. This report is their story—a story of constant upheaval, educational struggles, declining health, and violence. It is also a story of opportunity for those with the will and the power to influence policy and create change.